A user equipment (UE) may be configured to establish a connection with a network. For example, the UE may be mobile and utilize a wireless communications protocol. Based upon the capabilities of the hardware and software of the UE, the connection may be made with different types of networks. For example, the network may be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network. When connected to the LTE network, various functionalities may become available corresponding to capabilities of the LTE network and the UE. For example, the UE may utilize Discontinuous Reception (DRX), particularly Connected DRX (CDRX). The DRX and CDRX may be features of the LTE network that enables the UE to conserve a limited power supply.
The UE may also be configured to communicate with the LTE network and/or with other UEs via the LTE network. This communication may include the UE receiving data (i.e., downlink) or transmitting data (i.e., uplink). For example, the user of the UE may wish to write an email and transmit this data. In another example, the UE may provide network parameter information to a network component of the LTE such as an evolved Node B (eNB). To properly transmit data from the UE, the communication parameters between the UE and the LTE network are required to be synchronized. One mechanism used in this regard is the grant of uplink resources by the LTE network for the UE. Based upon scheduling involving frames and subframes, the UE may transmit data based upon the uplink grant. One particular type of information that may be transmitted is a channel quality indicator (CQI) such as during a Voice over LTE (VoLTE) call.
Although the CQI information may provide an improved experience for the user, the manner in which the CQI and other uplink transmissions operate relative to the CDRX cycle may conflict with an optimization of power conservation. For example, the CQI information may be transmitted in a cyclical manner that may repeatedly force the transmitter of the UE into a wake state from a sleep state. In another example, for each transmission, the UE may await a response from the LTE network. The response may unnecessarily force the receiver of the UE into a wake state from a sleep state, particularly when the response may have little to no impact on any communication performance.